


Chocolate Day - or How I met your Scarecrow

by AkaiMirage



Series: Chronicles of Umino [3]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Attempt at Humor, Constructive Criticism Welcome, Gen, Kid Hatake Kakashi, Kid Umino Iruka, Pre-Naruto Canon Era, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-25
Updated: 2020-12-31
Packaged: 2021-03-09 06:54:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,655
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27209947
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AkaiMirage/pseuds/AkaiMirage
Summary: Alt. title:Chronicles of Umino - the time traveling Iruka-turned-into-a-kid wreak havoc upon the villageA two-part fic featuring Iruka and Kakashi (with cameos of Sakumo because we love him).Written mainly from Kakashi's point of view.
Series: Chronicles of Umino [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1919578
Comments: 10
Kudos: 50





	1. Wrappers

**Author's Note:**

> Explanation of the timeline, see the end note.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> First meeting. Iruka is delighted, Kakashi confused and Sakumo relieved. Just another typical day, in other words.

It would've taken a less attentive shinobi to notice their house seemed to have been turned into a cache of a copious amount of pastries, but aside from Kakashi's lack of a sweet tooth, he had also noticed a shift in his father's behavior.

For what had seemed like forever, ever since that failed mission of his, the man had been looking like the walking dead - when not holed up in his room refusing to let his son in.

It had hurt, deeply. Not so much what other people were saying, that he could ignore, but because he couldn't understand why he was shut out of his father's world without any explanation as to what he had done wrong.

Surely there _must_ have been something, and with his father refusing to acknowledge his existence, he couldn't even beg forgiveness for whatever offense he'd unknowingly committed.

It had been fine, he'd decided then, even as an uncomfortable feeling settled in his chest. If he no longer had a place in his father's heart, then he wouldn't make room for Sakumo either.

It was _fine_. Really, it was.

Putting all his focus and dedication into his missions, it became easier to ignore the thorn cutting deeper into his soul, never acknowledging how much he missed his old man.

Then, out of the blue, his father had come out of his room, walking around the house and actually looked at him, like _really_ looked at him, as though it finally registered that Kakashi wasn't simply another vengeful ghost haunting him.

The seven year old boy was confused by it, to say the least, but it also caused the pain and previous never-relenting fear gripping at his heart to hurt less.

Once he figured out there was a connection between the pastries and Sakumo's odd personality change, he decided to get to the bottom of it.

Not so much because he was ungrateful of the changes, no, he was rather pleased that his father was talking to him again, but because he was curious.

And that is why he was now staring up at a child wearing a bashful expression in his young face. An academy student had managed to do what he, a chûnin, could not? Unacceptable!

The fact Umino didn't seem like a bad sort didn't help with the feeling of unease in his gut. The dolphin even had the nerve to direct a megawatt grin at him. How annoying.

He was cute, was the first thought in his mind as he met the gaze of a young Hatake Kakashi who was his senior in rank, but still two years younger and a full head shorter.

Iruka wanted to laugh, but he had the feeling the little prodigy who seemed to be conflicted over whether he should be glaring at him or not would appreciate it. Kakashi would most likely take it as an insult, and he didn't want to offend the future sensei of his favorite blond. So, he smiled. For some reason, his wide grin seemed to perplex the little chûnin.

Oh, he was so precious! It was decided then, he'd "adopt" the kunai-wielding cinnamon roll. Whether Kakashi liked it or not.

It was strange, though, to see him with two functioning eyes, and he peered shamelessly into them, and then almost in afterthought took notice of how mesmerizing those gray irises truly were.

Eyeing the still grinning academy student, Kakashi crossed his arms.

"So," he began, his voice almost accusive, "you're the reason my pa has been acting so strange."

It was the truth, after all, no matter how small his gratitude was, as if he'd ever tell this... _child_ that.

"Ah. Ha-ha, yeah, I guess so," was the 'eloquent' answer he was bestowed.

He hummed slowly, and then turned around to leave. When Umino made no sign of following, Kakashi paused, and turned a narrow glare in the kid's direction. "Are you coming or not?"

Iruka, who had dejectedly watched Hatake walk away from him, grinned brightly and rushed to walk beside the miniature version of the jônin he remembered.

The leaves rustling in the wind, rays of sunshine in his face, blinding him with that pleasant warmth he so enjoyed, Iruka felt content walking next to the chûnin beside him.

Until a stray hair-lock slid stubbornly down in front of his right eye despite his previous attempts to brush it away from his face, behind his ear where it should've been kept by the useless hair pin. Then he was pissed off, though not without reason.

The pin not functioning as well as it should, meant that _that_ was 500 ryo down the drain, and the vendor that had sold it to him would definitely need to keep both eyes open from now on as Iruka did not appreciate getting ripped off.

And if Kakashi threw him mystified glances as a fuming Iruka hatched plans for sweet revenge, he decided he did not care even the slightest bit about it.

It wasn't a long walk, before the duo stood in front of the porch at Kakashi's home. He wasn't sure why he'd invited the other boy, usually he wouldn't have even entertained that notion, but perhaps it was simply due to the fact that Umino had done something Kakashi would always feel grateful for; managing to make his old man smile again.

Opening the front door, he glanced pointedly at the scarred boy, a silent " _go ahead"._ Taking the hint, Umino stepped inside, with Kakashi closing the door behind them.

Walking into the kitchen, the presence of a snake sannin did not warrant more reaction out of the Hatake prodigy than a raised eyebrow, as the sight of Orochimaru having tea with his old man wasn't that an unusual, but for some reason it took the scar-nosed conundrum standing next to him by surprise.

Kakashi had never seen anybody's chin fall to the floor as rapid as Umino's had. If Kakashi had been less disciplined, he would have giggled. He hid his mouth behind his hand, just in case his twitching lips would betray him, mask or no mask.

Orochimaru, thankfully, didn't stay for long, for even if Kakashi felt comfortable in his vicinity, it was clear Umino didn't. He supposed it made sense as the man was a powerful jônin, and his presence could seem daunting to a mere student.

His father seemed happy enough to have an impromptu house guest over for dinner, more so that it had been at Kakashi's behest.

While it was too bad the meal wasn't miso with eggplant, the White Fang's teriyaki special was nothing to sneeze at, and it had the silver-haired boy mouth-watering in anticipation.

"So," Sakumo started, as he finished handing out plates, "there's the annual festival coming up soon. Are you boys thinking of going?"

 _Gee thanks, papa,_ Kakashi barely refrained from eye-rolling at the man's lack of subtlety. Though, judging by the pleading look in Iruka's mien, he wanted them both to go.

With the two of them ganging up on him like this, Kakashi felt it was a battle he was not going to win.

True enough, one week later, the two boys was found in the living room, getting themselves ready for the summer festival.

Kakashi wasn't sure how the other boy had managed to talk him into it, but it was too late to back out, and more importantly, he did not want to.

The village was in the middle of a war, one that according to some people his old man was the cause, but for once, this particular day, Kakashi wanted to be a kid just like any other seven year old.

To quote Umino, "Sorrow's for tomorrow, today is for fun."

Seeing Iruka without the hairband on was odd, and the boy in question didn't seem too comfortable about having his hair resting on his shoulder blades, having brushed the unruly strands away from his face three times and bound to be going for a fourth.

"I could braid it for you, if you want," Kakashi offered. At least, that would take care of that problem, and they'd be able to leave.

Despite of an initial reluctance, Iruka let him deal with the bird's nest, and not to toot his own horn, but he was pleased about the result given that he had never done that for anybody before.

"Hmm, something's missing though."

Noticing the lilac colored flower in the vase that stood out like a sore thumb among the other dahlias, Kakashi picked it up. Removing the moist stem, he then turned to Iruka and placed it behind his right ear.

Tilting his head slightly, his gaze roamed over Iruka's figure. "Yes, that will do," he concluded, then, and turned to leave. "Shall we?"

Iruka only chuckled in response, and followed the younger boy out to the kitchen in search for Sakumo.

The plan was for them to go alone to the festival, but Kakashi still had his reservations about that.

Upon finding his father, Kakashi walked over to him. Looking up, he asked with a hopeful lilt to his voice, "Are you sure you don't want to come with us, papa?"

Sakumo smiled as he adjusted the hem of his son's navy blue yukata. "I'm sure, Kakashi. You have fun, now, you two," he motioned to get them to leave the compound.

"Minato-san's coming over, so I won't be alone," Sakumo assured his son when his pride and joy seemed reluctant to leave.

Nodding, with one last glance at his old man's face, Kakashi walked at a leisured pace, and somehow, on the way, the other boy's hand nestled into his.

It was warm upon touch, and fitted into his like a glove, so Kakashi saw no reason to complain.

He could feel the stares on his back, unfriendly gazes following his every move. Just waiting for him to slip up. To give them another reason to hate his guts.

He had grown accustomed to it by now, so it did not bother him. Not at all. He had already made his mind up about that, and there was nothing they could do to change that. As for the hypothetical pain he did not feel... he found the worried glances Iruka sent his way oddly comforting.

They shouldn't have been, but they were, and even though his heart was hammering in his chest, Kakashi was able to stay calm and focused.

"You'll see," Iruka murmured into his ear, soothingly, "they'll get over it eventually."

Glancing at his... friend?, Kakashi mulled over that promise that had been spoken with a certainty the other boy shouldn't have been able to give.

Although it went unseen due to the blue mask that covered the lower part of his face, Kakashi's mouth quirked upwards into a small smile.

Hand in hand, the two children strolled further into the market place that had done a make over for the festivities.

"Oh, look," Iruka pointed excitedly to a stall to their far right. "You can catch your own goldfish there. Come on, we got to try that!"

Kakashi did not want pets, much less fish that did nothing but eat and poop, but for some reason he couldn't deny Iruka this, and so there they were, scooping out goldfish with small nets fastened onto thin, carefully carved sticks made of bamboo.

Or, at least that was what Kakashi did. Iruka, on the other hand, did not seem to have any luck at all.

He had already ruined three scoops, and the one time when he actually managed to briefly catch one, the fish had wiggled enough in its escape attempt to land inside the front of the stall man's yukata. Unless you had been there to see it, you wouldn't entertain the idea that that was even possible. Unfortunately, he had been and the secondhand embarrassment made Kakashi wonder why he couldn't have better friends, or at the very least one that didn't get _him_ banned from goldfish fishing.

That he didn't care for goldfish in the first place, had nothing to do with it.

"Come on, Kakashi," the embarrassment walking behind him complained, "I said I was sorry." Pointedly, he didn't deign to answer, and kept on walking, clutching the plastic bag containing his prizes the vendor hadn't managed to take back. ( _"They are mine. I won them fair and square, you blackguard," he hissed, refusing to let go of the bag. Upon noticing the increasing mass of spectators, Nakamura begrudgingly allowed the Hatake brat to keep the fish. Better he loose six fish than his customers. That did not mean he had to take this insult from a child who should respect his elders. - "Get out of here, and don't come back!")_

Kakashi felt he had all the right in the world to be pissed off, especially as this hadn't even been his idea of fun in the first place, but he _supposed_ he could forgive Iruka this affront. It wasn't as though it had been Iruka's fault. Not entirely, at least.

Kakashi stopped walking. Iruka, who had not expected this, bumped into his back. Kakashi tumbled slightly before regaining his footing and whipped his head around to look back at Iruka with narrowed eyes. "Watch it, will you?"

Iruka returned his glare with one of his own, obviously having had enough of his friend's attitude. "Wasn't my fault," he protested, and folded his arms stubbornly over his chest.

They stared at each other under a brief, uncomfortable silence, before Kakashi shook his head as though he had suddenly remembered the reason why he had stopped walking in the first place.

Raising the plastic bag, he observed how the other boy's eyes grew wide in realization of what had been offered.

He broke eye contact, then, and found the snail passing him by in a tardy pace to be rather interesting, the telltale of his flushed cheeks thankfully hidden by his comfortable mask.

It did not matter, though, as the look Iruka gave him while accepting the bag made it obvious the kid had seen right through him.

"Don't read too much into it," he felt it necessary to add, leaving no room for misconceptions, "I just don't like fish. Too much hassle to look after." It almost did not feel like a lie.

"What will you name them?"

Chewing on a stick of dango, Iruka hummed in contemplation. With his hair braided and the lilac flower peeking through next to his ear, Kakashi assessed from an entirely objective point of view, Iruka made for a pretty boy.

"I'm not sure," Iruka said. "Any suggestions?"

Not really. But if he had to think about it, "Well, how about Ichi, Ni, Sa-"

"Now, hold on there," Iruka cut him off, looking incredulously at him. "You want me to name the fish by numerals?" Kakashi did not understand his companion's aversion to what would obviously have been an excellent choice for the rather unremarkable creatures.

"What's wrong with that? They're fish! They won't care what you call them."

Pointing at one of the aforementioned goldfish, Kakashi shrugged. "That one practically has "roku" written all over him."

The goldfish didn't raise any objection to that, however it's owner sure did.

Much too soon, the day was over, and it was time for the two boys to head back home.

Iruka followed Kakashi to the gates of the Hatake lands, feeling that as he was the oldest, in this life as well as in the old timeline, it was his responsibility to make sure that the chûnin would return home safely.

Not that he doubted Kakashi's ability to look after himself, he was after all an experienced shinobi albeit a fairly new one, but it was still difficult from time to time to come to terms with.

Waving to the retreating back of the other boy, Iruka turned around to walk back home, taking his time in order to fully enjoy the cool breeze that caressed his face, and of how the increasing mass of stars were peeking through the wisps of translucent clouds.

It had been fun, to hang out with the Hatakes', it also made him aware of how the time traveling seemed to affect him in ways he hadn't considered before now.

Iruka couldn't remember being this impulsive or childish in his first childhood. He had no other plausible theory than that the knowledge of what the future had in store in addition to going through puberty yet again was the cause for this emotional roller coaster.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Timeline of the CoU series:  
> Iruka traveled from a time prior to Danzo seeking to steal the position of hokage from the comatose Tsunade, hence why he didn't _know_ just how rotten Danzo really is.  
> He does have a strong feeling though, hence his private thoughts in TaT.
> 
> Like mentioned in FtH, Iruka was aged up a few years, to be more specific, he's 10 during FtH, TSD and during CDoHIMYS.  
> Reason why?  
> I don't want to change canon events unless strictly necessary.  
> Iruka needed to still be in the academy, which he graduated at age 11.  
> He also couldn't be too young, or the more serious aspects of this series wouldn't work out,  
> for there are limits to what kids can process, even if they are "aspiring murderlings".
> 
> Q: So, if Kakashi is 2 years younger than Iruka in this AU, how is he 7 in this fic?  
> A: In canon, he graduated academy at age 5, became chûnin at 6, and was 7 when Sakumo committed seppuku.  
> So, he would need to be 7 at this point for the timeline (both canon and au) to make sense.  
> You also have to consider the fact that Iruka's birthday is in _May_ while Kakashi's is in _September_.  
> This AU (unless stated otherwise) takes place during early to mid summer, this fic specifically is set in June.


	2. Flavoring and the Whipped Creamed nose

The day had been quite the experience, the silver haired chûnin smiled to himself as he took his shoes off in favor of indoor footwear.

The _tadaima!_ barely finished rolling off his tongue upon finding himself being lifted from the floor, and his face pressed snugly to his old man's warm chest.

Listening to that steady heartbeat, what little anxiety he might've held onto ebbed away.

"Welcome home, Kakashi," Sakumo said, and if his eyes were suspiciously shiny, neither father nor son chose to acknowledge that fact.

The presence of the boy's jônin-sensei made himself known, holding a tray of beverages, with the hot fumes encompassing his youthful face serving to give the man an appearance that seemed almost ethereal.

Minato had stayed over for lunch, and although Sakumo had told him it wasn't necessary for him to keep a watchful eye over his friend while Kakashi was at the festival, he had insisted, knowing just how frail Sakumo's psyche had been and although his old friend seemed much happier these days, he was still worried.

It wasn't until his student had returned home that he could finally let out a sigh of relief.

Smiling as he handed out a pristine and dark colored mug, he asked about his day. He was, after all, rather curious about how Kakashi's day had been. "Did you have fun?"

Closing his eyes for a brief moment, Kakashi thought of the day he'd had.

The stroll with Iruka, the contests. Even the altercation with that street vendor.

It had been somewhat strange, and he'd felt uncomfortable at times, but it had also very much been a good day for him.

One of the likes he couldn't recall have had for a long time. Opening his eyes, he was entirely truthful when he said _yes_.

On another note, the fish were not named One to Six.

What Iruka had failed to mention, although in retrospect it did suit his personality, was that he owned a cat, and thanks to this cream colored Kura-chan, the poor fish didn't even last 'til dawn.

To Iruka's credit, he was actually sad about the fish' demise at the paws of the little terminator, but Kakashi assured him he wasn't offended that his gift had met a premature end.

In the private of his mind, Kakashi found mold to be more interesting than the finned creatures. Which, he was tactful enough to not mention to his grieving friend.

He had a feeling it wouldn't have gone over well, and that kind of headache was simply not worth it.

"Would you like to go out to eat," he asked. He didn't favor sugary stuff, but it was common knowledge chocolate helps when one is feeling down.

"...." Iruka glanced up at him, a tear still caught between those long, thick lashes. "You-," he hesitated, sniffled and then said with a slight trembling voice, "you mean that...?"

Closing his eyes, to what Iruka would perceive as a precursor to the copy-nin's famous "eye smiles", he then nodded.

The boy looked up at him during a brief silence, and then his mouth slowly formed into a broad grin. It is hard to describe the sensations Kakashi felt at that moment, but it was something akin to seeing the sunrise for the first time.

All he knew was that he felt happy, and he wanted to keep that emotion for himself. Once more he understood why his old man felt comfortable around the Umino.

It just wasn't possible to keep a frown in his vicinity, and Kakashi liked that about him.

He wasn't sure how it had come to this.

It had started off on a good note, at least he had thought Iruka to have been comforted by the plate of cookies he had already devoured. Where he put all that, he didn't know, the boy was like a vacuum.

Either way, Kakashi had also been having a good time, sipping on his green tea in peace while mulling over what good deed he must've made for _Iruka_ to want be his friend, when the whirlwind of emotions got the better of him.

He didn't remember how the argument had started, or who was to blame for this, but like hell he would be the losing party.

"Well, if you don't want it, we could just throw it away then," he exclaimed as the plate of chocolate cake was childishly pulled back and forth in a tug of war. "No, forget it! You paid for it, so might as well-!"

Just then, a spasm in his hand caused Iruka to loose his grip on the plate that shoot off like a rocket. **_Splat!_**

The slice of cake had landed in the center part of Kakashi's face, and after a nanosecond was sliding down leaving a creamy trail on the mask before falling into his lap like a sad sponge.

The broken shards of the plate was lying forgotten beside the wall it had crashed into a few feet away.

Iruka stared at him with his eyes widened comically as silence reigned.

Then, the first chuckle escaped his lips and that broke the dam for the uncontrollable laughter that had been bubbling up since he took notice of how the masked nose was covered by cinnamon sprinkled whipped cream.

"What _on earth_ are you two doing?", a voice belonging to a boy slightly older came from behind them.

The silver haired chûnin, with all his cream-covered glory, whipped his head around to stare at the Uchiha who had intruded on their bonding moment.

Iruka thought it took quite a lot to be able to pull off that look, and it almost seemed unfair how effortlessly Kakashi managed to do that.

"Go home, Obito," Kakashi said, before Iruka could get it into his head to invite the pest that for some reason wouldn't leave him alone.

"Well, would be a shame then, Bakashi," the Uchiha mused apropos of nothing, "if everybody would hear how the _Great Kakashi_ was 'mauled' by a cake."

The glare he sent in Iruka's direction, when he failed to hold in a snort of amusement, would have terrified him had it been the _old_ Copy-nin Kakashi, but this child whose nose was covered by whipped cream?

It was all he could do to not roll over cackling because the notion was simply _that_ ridiculous.

"The way I see it," the Uchiha continued, unbothered by the withering look his rival was bestowing him, "you can either let me hang around, or I will tell the whole village of this, and they will _never_ let you forget about it."

Kakashi wanted to call his bluff, but there was that wicked gleam in the other boy's eyes he didn't trust. _He's not bluffing_ , was the conclusion he came to as he grit his teeth in displeasure that Obito had the nerve to blackmail him.

"Oh, fine," he conceded, gesturing to one of the vacant seats. "But if you're going to stay, I don't want to hear one word out of you, you little extortioner."

He considered it a win, that Kakashi begrudgingly allowed him to join their table.

Although he had never seen his rival in such an... _undignified_ situation before, he counted himself lucky that he now would be able to keep this one memory nobody else would be privy to.

Despite of the small fib he'd told Kakashi to convince him into letting him stay for a while, even if his rival had declined, he would've had absolutely no intention of revealing this incident to the other villagers, and most certainly _not_ his clan.

Well, what his rival didn't know wouldn't hurt him. If he wasn't so difficult to approach, maybe Obito would've been confident enough in seeking his friendship without having to resort to white lies.

It is hard to say just what drew him to his teammate in the first place.

No matter how much he worked for it, Obito couldn't quite catch up to him.

That is not to say he blamed Kakashi for his troubles, the kid was a genius and he was.... not.

Despite of his best efforts, he was stuck to watch the back of his teammate as the silver haired chûnin advanced in ranks and the gap between them increased even further.

He supposed it simply was that, as his clansmen would constantly remind him _; 'his best isn't good enough'_.

He didn't know anything about Obito.

He had never talked to the genin, even though they had, briefly, shared the same class.

The Uchiha had graduated the academy two years ago, at the age of nine, so while not overly remarkable, if compared to the likes of Kakashi, he'd have to have something the teachers deemed worthwhile.

Though, actually, to compare Obito and Kakashi was rather unfair, seeing that Kakashi was from a different cloth altogether.

Perhaps it made sense for the chûnin to be familiar with the snake sannin after all, it was just, the thought took him by surprise.

In either case, the sannin, Sakumo, Minato, Kakashi - they all were genii, and ridiculously powerful. Or in Kakashi's case, had the potential to be all that.

The Uchiha kid, who knows what he would've amounted to, if he hadn't died prematurely.

Granted, before now, he'd had little interest in him, focusing only on the Hatake family and those he'd considered his loved ones, but perhaps he could make space for the subdued Uchiha who's lonely gaze reminded him just a bit too much of his old student to be comfortable.

Saying good bye to his teammate, Kakashi and Iruka made to go to the Hatake's house.

It was when they got back to Kakashi's house they learn that the Umino couple had been called out on missions, and not wanting to leave their son in an empty house, had asked Sakumo to look after him until they've returned home.

Given that most of Konoha still were giving the man the cold shoulder, to put it in mild words, the show of trust the Umino's was giving him was paramount. Not for the first time, Iruka thought of how lucky he was to have Ikkaku and Kohari as parents.

They did not agree on everything, but they had always made him feel cherished, and were very passionate people; the kind of which would find little difficulty in voicing their continued support of the disgraced hero.

Close to two in the morning, finds the White Fang lying awake in bed, sleep persistently eluding him.

The sun had barely set, and already the first pale yellow could be hinted at the edge of the horizon.

Finally giving up on sleep, Sakumo got out of bed, having a strange feeling in his gut.

For one reason or another, he had to make sure his son was alright.

Carefully sliding the door open just enough for one eye to peek into Kakashi's room, Sakumo drank in the sight of two prepubescents sleeping peacefully next to each other.

A smile spread on his face as his eyes burned from the tears that threatened to fall.

 _Thank you_ , he whispered silently, in gratitude to the deities that his son had found a friend at last.

Closing the door, he walked back to his room, the last persistent weight on his heart forgotten.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uchiha Obito is.... well, not a character I have written before and so find him a bit difficult.  
> Actually he was not supposed to be part of this series other than the briefest of mentions, but somehow he _still_ managed to worm his way into this story.  
> Don't how how that happened.... **shrugs**  
>  Also, him being a genin is not a mistake on my part. Here he hasn't had the chance to take the chûnin exams yet, but will later this year (cuz yeah, plan to stick to canon on this one)
> 
> On another note, I remember the time when I thought this two-part fic's word count would be at 2k max.  
> Well, you see how well that went... ;)


End file.
